By David Knox
Sports Editor
PINSON — Clay-Chalkville opened the volleyball season on a strong note, sweeping past host Pinson Valley in three sets last Thursday.
The Lady Cougars of Natasha Brown won 25-14, 25-20 and 25-15 in the Class 6A, Area 12 opener for both squads.
Our energy,” Brown said after the match, answering a question about what impressed her most with her squad. “That was my concern. Our strength, because we’re so small, is our serving. I was very pleased with that. We have a young setter (Taylor Burrell) and we did make some adjustments.”
Play struggled some at the beginning of the second set.
“We didn’t start with the same energy, got down five, six points,” Brown said.
The Lady Cougars picked it up, won a key rally, and pulled away.
“That changed the momentum. And the difference was we communicated and played with passion,” Brown said.
The third set was all Clay, jumping out to a 6-1 lead and rolling home.
Brown was especially pleased with the play of Mekaila Hill and freshman Lauren Charles.
Clay went on to compete in the Briarwood Serve-Off tournament. The Lady Cougars beat St. Paul’s 2-1 before dropping matches to Boaz (2-1),
Thompson (2-0) and Briarwood (2-1). Clay closed with a 2-0 win over Shades Valley.
The Lady Cougars were scheduled to host Ramsay on Tuesday night and Helena on Thursday before a tri-match at Oxford next week.
Huskies open season Wednesday: After stormy weather canceled their opener against Springville last week, the Hewitt-Trussville Lady Huskies are set to open the season — and with an area foe on the road.
Grissom will host Hewitt Wednesday night in a 7A, Area 12 match. The JV game is set for 5 p.m. with the varsities set for 6.
Coach Katie Riggins is excited about opening the season. “Grissom has a good team and we are excited to go on the road. We have more depth this year and if we play to our potential we could have success in the match.”
The Lady Huskies’ first home match will be on Sept. 14 against Briarwood.